‘But you didn’t,’ Prozor said. ‘And you’ve got my gratitude – whether you want it or not.’

‘I’m glad we both made it,’ I said.

‘Not half as glad as I am.’

‘And I’m glad to be able to call you a friend. When we were first on the ship, I don’t think you liked us.’

‘Don’t mind admittin’ it, neither. Sits hard with us, watchin’ the captain fawn over his new favourites. But it was wrong of me, taking against you like I done.’

‘It’s over now, Prozor. We made it, and I’m grateful. We’re friends, aren’t we?’

Her tone got all stern, like she was correcting me over some life-and-death detail on a spacesuit or airlock.

‘No, Fura. We’re not. That word ain’t sufficient. We crewed together on a good ship, and that goes a thousand leagues deeper and further than any friendship.’

‘Thank you.’ I wondered if I ought to leave it at that, but something had been itching away at me for a while. Even though this wasn’t exactly a private place I knew I wouldn’t have many more chances to scratch it. ‘He’d have been proud of us, wouldn’t he?’

‘The Cap’n?’

‘I don’t want to think we let him down. Not after all the bad things that already happened to him.’ I paused, wondering if she was going to pick up the thread I’d very obviously left dangling. But Prozor wasn’t making things easier than they needed to be. ‘I mean about his daughter, and how he lost her. We never really went over it, did we?’

‘We could talk about this some other time, Fura.’

‘There might not be another time. We’re all that’s left of his crew, aren’t we? If the truth dies with us . . .’

‘With me, you mean.’

‘I just want to know, Prozor. I was a part of it, wasn’t I? He even started telling me about her himself. He talked as if she was dead, but Cazaray said she’d been taken, and when Bosa attacked she told Rack his daughter was still alive.’

Prozor leaned in closer to me that she only needed to whisper, and even then I could see it was causing her pain. Then again, she must have realised I had a bone between my teeth and I wasn’t going to let it go.

‘She may as well have been dead to him.’

‘But not enough that he was willing to hurt Bosa’s ship too badly. Oh, I know our coil-guns were cooked pretty badly. But Rack wouldn’t have taken out the Nightjammer, even if he’d had the chance, would he? He couldn’t put his daughter out of his mind, not while there was a chance of seeing her again. What would’ve happened to her, Proz? What would Bosa have done to Illyria?’